A environmentalist legal group is asking the Army Corps of Engineers to deny permits that would allow the construction of the first phase of the proposed Interstate 422 Northern Beltline.

The Southern Environmental Law Center in Birmingham filed a comment Monday as part of the process whereby the Corps is deciding whether to allow a “Section 404” permit to the Alabama Department of Transportation. That permit, if granted, would certify that the project complies with the federal Clean Water Act.

The SELC says that ALDOT is trying to lock the I-422 project in place by having the Corps consider only the impact on the initial segment of the highway, which would be built between Alabama Highways 75 and 79 in the Palmerdale area.

“Our problem is by doing that, the Corps is only looking at that 3.4-mile segment and the 1.66 acres of wetland affected by it, and not the entire road and the 68 acres affected by that,” said Susan Stokes, and associate attorney for the firm. “They’re not looking at the secondary and cumulative impacts, as required by law.”

Stokes contends that if the Corps signs off on the first phase, then the rest of the beltline would be much more difficult to forestall if environmental issues were not addressed.

“The permit would essentially allow the entire project to go forward, not just the first segment,” Stokes said.

The SELC filed the comment on behalf of Black Warrior Riverkeepers, a conservation group which advocates for its namesake river. The SELC also filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of Black Warrior to stop the Beltline, claiming that ALDOT had “failed to fully account for the environmental impacts of the massive, high-priced Northern Beltline,” according to a press release last April.

“Even though we don’t agree, people say there will be a lot of growth with this road. When they say that, they need to back it up with studies,” Stokes said. “So many beltlines are roads to nowhere that don’t produce a lot of economic benefit. We’re just asking ALDOT to do their homework.”

The proposed I-422 would cut an arc-shaped path through the northern part of Jefferson County. It would run from the current intersection of I-20/59 and I-459 in McCalla to the northeast, cutting between Gardendale and Morris. It would continue eastward toward an interchange with I-59 northeast of Trussville, a total length of 52 miles. It would run through the watershed of the Black Warrior, particularly Locust Fork.

The project is estimated to cost $4.7 billion, mostly paid by federal highway funds. The SELC contends the project would also be costly to local governments for infrastructure changes and improvements to accommodate the highway, which would be a burden to Jefferson County, which filed for Chapter 9 bankruptcy last week.